'Daechang-dong Profit Concealment' Kim Man-bae's Closest Associates Released on Bail

The bail requests of close aides who were arrested and indicted on charges of concealing the development profits of Daejang-dong by Kim Man-bae, the major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu Asset Management, have been granted.

Kim Man-bae, the major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu Asset Management, is attending a trial related to lobbying and preferential treatment allegations in the Daejang-dong development project held on February 8 at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

On the 26th, Judge Kim Sang-il of the Criminal Division 1 at the Seoul Central District Court accepted the bail requests of Choi Woo-hyang, a director of Hwacheon Daeyu (former vice chairman of Ssangbangwool Group), and co-CEO Lee Han-sung. Since Choi and Lee had no separate trial schedules that day, they are expected to proceed with release procedures immediately.

The court set conditions for their release, including appearing at the time and place designated by the court, submitting a written pledge not to destroy evidence, and posting a bail bond of 50 million won. The court also ordered the attachment of real-time location tracking electronic devices and prohibited any contact with witnesses, informants, or other related persons involved in the case. Their residence was restricted, and leaving the country without permission was banned.

Choi and Lee were released six days before the expiration of their detention period. According to the Criminal Procedure Act, the maximum detention period for the first trial is six months. Having been arrested and indicted on January 2 of this year, they were scheduled to be released on February 2 next month even if their bail had been denied.

Choi and Lee are accused of violating the Act on the Regulation and Punishment of Criminal Proceeds Concealment by hiding approximately 36 billion won in criminal proceeds related to the Daejang-dong project from November 2021 to December 2022. They allegedly split the amount into small checks and stored them in officetels contracted under borrowed names or transferred the funds to third-party accounts.

It was investigated that when the Daejang-dong investigation team was replaced due to personnel changes in the prosecution leadership in May last year, effectively restarting the reinvestigation, they closely monitored the investigation and responded by relocating the hidden funds.

Choi, known to have a background in organized crime, is a longtime associate of Kim for 20 years. When Kim’s first arrest warrant request was dismissed in October 2021, Choi was seen waiting in front of Seoul Detention Center wearing a motorcycle helmet and was nicknamed "Helmet Man."

Currently, among the key figures in the Daejang-dong case, Kim is the only defendant undergoing trial while in detention. Initially arrested on charges of breach of trust related to Daejang-dong, Kim was released in November last year after the detention period expired but was re-arrested in February on charges of concealing criminal proceeds. Since then, the court has denied Kim’s bail requests.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.